Many people have the time of their lives at university. However, some recent stories have built up negative connotations for parents and students. For example, a video that went viral earlier this year recorded students at Nottingham Trent University in the UK chanting racist comments in front of the door of another student in their university accommodation (halls).

You might have seen this recent viral video that highlighted the negative, and potentially dangerous, side of residing in university accommodation. Thankfully, with the advancements in technology and the implementation of access control systems in university halls, Rufaro was physically safe from any threat. But now, expectations must be higher to ensure that this type of behaviour, or risk, does not happen again.

In this article, security experts 2020 Vision investigate how useful security mechanisms – like access control systems – are for protecting students.

What is an access control system?

Essentially, an access control system offers two big benefits when it comes to security. The first has a more basic yet effective approach and can enable or prevent someone from entering or exiting a location — this could range from the whole site, a wing of a building, or a singular room that needs protecting from unauthorised personnel.

The second benefit is that location movements can be tracked while a compliance audit can be completed. It can also detect any areas where improvements could be necessary.

In addition to key cards, ID tags can also be incorporated into the access to a university hall of residence. The purpose of having such security measures in place is to help protect students from unauthorised access, which could potentially threaten their wellbeing or put their possessions at risk.

With universities becoming ever-increasingly like businesses, and with the cost of entering university at an all-time high, the expectations are that student living standards and safety are paramount, especially with students – initially – having to live with strangers. According to a survey carried out by Save The Student, the average cost of renting is £131 per week, which leaves students with £8 to live on after deducting the payment from their maintenance loan.

Although university culture does play a large part on student life, excessive and unordinary behaviour is not acceptable. It was found that 52% of students have noisy housemates, 37% of housemates steal food (considered as theft), 8% have dangerous living conditions, and an astonishing 6% have experienced a break in or a burglary.

These stats highlight that there are many students who don’t view their accommodation as value for money. Now, there is a demand for larger investments into suffering areas — accommodation providers are under extreme amounts of pressure to make changes otherwise they could encounter detrimental damages that will impact them in the long run.

What are the benefits of access control?

There are many potential benefits to having a campus access control system. Evidently from the story above discussing the racist chants, it has become critical to ensure the safety and protection of young people as unsolicited actions can be carried out without any prior detection.

It’s true that some universities offer students the opportunity to choose their new living quarters with factors like gender, age and drinking preferences taken into consideration. However, there are still many faults. Universities should be looking at implementing more personal options that enable young people to properly filter down the type of roommates they are looking for — such as language, religion, race, and more to create a safer and more familiar environment for all.

Advanced Credentials — smart phones are now a part of daily life for students. Locked areas can now be accessed via security info/credentials stored safely on a phone.

The neutralisation of old Key Cards —university accommodation keys – unlike regular keys – cannot be copied. Once a student has left, each card can be deactivated. This removes the risk of any unauthorised entry and heightens the safety of the new tenant after the previous lease is up.

Access Limitation — an access control system means only eligible students can access the premises. As they require the swipe of a unique key card for entry permissions which are given only to students, this will make it difficult for anyone other those who are enrolled as residents to enter.

It’s clear that university accommodation should have enhanced security. This is even more pertinent if it can be used in a lockdown process that helps reduce the obvious risks that come with fast-moving incidents (i.e. firearm attacks).

Debate Chamber Summer Schools are great for bright students who enjoy an intellectual challenge, and who are curious about the ways in which their knowledge can be applied to help solve real-world problems.

Our courses are rigorous, with an emphasis on independent thinking and collaborative problem-solving, providing a valuable insight into university level education.

Debate Chamber tutors are selected for their exceptional communication skills, a charismatic and inspiring classroom presence, and a true passion for their subject (typically they are Masters or PhD students, and so young enough to relate easily to school age students, at the same time as offering exceptional subject knowledge).

Group sizes for these courses are 12-14 students, and teaching involves a combination of mini-lectures, seminar discussions, team tasks and practical activities. The comfortable and welcoming environment makes it easy for students to share ideas amongst their peers, and to progress from their existing knowledge toward more challenging material.

Highlights for students aged 15-18:

The Summer Law School in three distinct five-day Parts to allow time for more cases, more analysis and more debate on some of the most intriguing legal questions. Students can choose to focus on Criminal Law, Civil Law or International Law, or to attend all three Parts for a comprehensive introduction to legal study.

The International Relations Summer School will introduce the central theories involved in the academic study of IR – realism, liberalism, constructivism and Marxism – and will then look at a range of detailed case studies in order to apply, test and explore these theories. Topics covered will include military intervention, international law, development aid, feminism and foreign policy, regional sessions looking at China and the Middle East, and the European response to the migration crisis.

The Medicine Summer School offers a series of two-day events with specialist sessions on cardiology, paediatrics, oncology, emergency medicine and many other topics – enabling students to attend a wide-ranging introduction or select the sessions most relevant to their interests.

Our Mathematics and Physics Summer Schools now offer options for students at GCSE, and also for those who have completed the first year of A Level study. These five-day events offer a challenging and rigorous exploration of theory and application, with a focus on developing practical problem-solving skills.

We also have courses in Economics, History, Classical Civilisations, Philosophy and Politics (all for students aged 15-18).

Last but not least, we also have a smaller number of courses available for younger students (ages 11-14) in Law, Medicine, Creative Writing and Science subjects.

Practical Details:

All the Summer School events will be held at University of London venues in Bloomsbury, Central London, and will take place in July and August 2019. Please note that these courses are not residential, and accommodation must be arranged independently if required.

You can find full details of schedules, dates, costs, student reviews and tutors at www.debatechamber.com.

There is a limited amount of bursary funding available for students who would otherwise have financial difficulty in attending – please see here for details.

The recent consultation on transforming children and young people’s mental health provision has highlighted the essential role that the education sector can play to support mental health and wellbeing. We recognise the real and positive differences staff working in education can make and we also understand the challenges this can present.

Team Mental Health provide an expert led, whole school approach developed by medical doctors who specialised to become consultant psychiatrists and a headteacher. As part of our multidimensional approach, we offer a whole school mental health awareness programme.

We don’t expect those working in education to become experts in mental health. However, we do want to empower all staff to continue to make a positive difference through prevention, detection, early intervention and stamping out stigma associated with mental health.

Our unique approach will also support schools to evidence to Ofsted their commitment in relation to the new inspection judgements set out in the 2019 framework.

Our next Advanced Mental Health Masterclass event is on Thursday 6th December 2018 at the MacDonald Burlington Hotel in Birmingham.

This intensive, fast paced, CPD UK accredited event is delivered by consultant psychiatrists. It is recommended for those working in the education sector who hold a position of responsibility relevant to supporting the mental health and wellbeing of pupils and staff and implementing development plans and policies.

Many children spend the majority of their time in front of an electronic screen, cooped up indoors. Getting them out for a spot of fresh air can be a challenge. But you needn’t struggle to get them to enjoy an expensive day out. In this article, ericaceous compost supplier Compost Direct will show you how all the fun of the outdoors can be found in your garden.

In the early-years stages

Early-years skills can be developed through playing in the garden. Messy play is a great way to improve sensory and cognitive development, whilst having fun. There is an abundance of research behind the advantages of messy play and how this unstructured form of activity can really help your child develop. This can be done in the garden with sand, water or even mud! It’s all about breaking down the usual rules that your child might face, such as being restricted to a play mat or not being too disruptive with toys. Encourage your child to draw shapes with different (child-friendly) tools and their fingers in various materials — this can help children to build up their finger and arm muscles, which is useful for when they come to hold a pen.

Your child can come into contact with so many new textures in the garden. They become used to handling solid objects, such as toys, and these are easy for children to learn because they don’t change shape. For example, letting your child come into contact with mud, a softer material, lets children broaden their knowledge and allows them to compare and understand new textures.

Overall learning experience

Doing homework out in the garden on a nice evening can be a great way to get some fresh air. Your child might have spent all day behind a desk at school doing their work and it’s nice to have a break from this when they come home. Make it easy for your child to work outdoors by purchasing a gazebo or having a table and chairs outdoors where homework can be done. 85% of teachers reported that they saw a positive impact on their pupils’ behaviour when they were taught outside. In addition to this, 92% of pupils said that they preferred their lessons to be outdoors. In a study between pupils who learnt indoors and those who learnt outdoors, those who were outside were found to have a better understanding of their responsibility to care for the environment.

Healthy diet

Research has revealed how children are more eager to eat fresh fruit and vegetables that they have had a hand in growing. This can be a great way to improve their diet and get them outdoors. Easy fruit and vegetables to grow include: strawberries, cabbage, radishes and potatoes. You can decide on the size of your patch and watch as your child runs outside to see what has grown that week.

Tasks for your children

Children like to have little tasks and jobs in order to feel responsible. Give them some tasks to do daily, or even weekly, and it’s likely that they’ll start to look forward to spending time in the garden. One simple task to get children outdoors could be to grow a sunflower. Each day your child can head outdoors to see how their plant is growing and practise some maths skills through measuring. This can be exciting for a child, as often the sunflower will grow taller than them!

If you are mowing the lawn or potting plants, why not get your child involved with keeping the garden tidy. Let them trim the edges of your garden, water the plants or do some de-weeding — it’s a nice way to spend time together, too.

The Casio FX 85GT+ and the Logik LK 83XP are excellent choices for your GCSE maths students. They both benefit from battery power with solar power back-up to provide extra reassurance for your students. Both calcs have a “natural display” function which enables students to enter expressions and data as shown in textbooks. As you would expect, the build quality of both calcs is excellent and both calcs benefit from a THREE year warranty. (excludes damage to the LCD).

The LogikLK 83XP has similar features to the CasioFX 85GT+ but without the “verify” and “recurring decimal” functions. Both calcs feature prime factorisation, random numbers, algebraic logic, multi-line replay, standard deviation, log / anti-log, hyperbolics etc and have a three year warranty and are available at short notice from Signpost Educational Ltd., The Logik LK 83XP is available from £ 5.25 each ex vat while the Casio FX 85GT+ starts from £ 7.75 each ex vat.

Over the years I’ve spoken to various teachers (mainly in secondary schools) and one topic seems to crop up more than others. It’s the problem of students turning up to lessons without a pen, pencil, ruler etc. Apparently this leads to a measure of disruption and wasted time at the start of lessons while students try to beg, steal or borrow what they need to benefit from the lesson.

Fortunately there are now a couple of simple, low cost products which can help to solve this problem.

The first is the “Student Essentials set” consisting of three good quality black ballpens, two full length HB pencils, a 15 cm ruler, eraser and a pencil sharpener …all packed in an A5 size “exam friendly” clear PVC zip slider wallet. From only 85p ex vat it will almost certainly prove useful for students and teachers alike.

The second is the “Value Maths set”…and once again it comprises the same A5 size

“exam friendly” clear PVC zip slider wallet but with some components which are specific to maths lessons: a metal compass and half pencil, 180 degree protractor, 15 cm ruler, sharpener, eraser, two good quality black ballpens and a full length HB pencil. From just £ 1.25 ex vat it should help restore a bit of order at the start of maths lessons!

Both these products can be obtained from Signpost Educational Ltd via their website:

The Debate Chamber Summer Schools offer students age 15-18 the opportunity to find out more about some fascinating subjects, prepare for university applications, meet like-minded peers and get to grips with some tough intellectual challenges.

The material will be challenging (for the older age-group, about the level of difficulty one might expect in the first year at university), but the atmosphere will be relaxed, with plenty of discussion, debate, and opportunities for students to shape the direction of classes.

Working in groups of 12 – 14 students over several days offers participants a real chance to get to know tutors and fellow students and to explore the topics or questions that particularly interest them.

The Law Summer School offers an exciting and challenging introduction to the legal profession, and is aimed at students who wish to take their first steps towards a legal career or Law degree. With options top specialise in particular areas of interest, this course includes mini-lectures on key areas of the law, seminar discussions on tricky and controversial legal questions, lively group negotiations and activities, and concludes with a full mock trial in which students take the role of barristers for the prosecution or defence.

‘The Summer Law School was an exhilarating and unforgettable five days. It gave me great insight into the theories of law and how they are implemented in real court cases; and also provided me with the opportunity to meet other young people with similar interests to me.’

The Medicine Summer School is split into five 2-day programmes, each covering a different area of medical practice. Students will be given the opportunity to work alongside practising medical students to develop the theoretical and applied skills necessary to become a doctor.

‘Debate Chamber’s Medicine Summer School was great! I learnt in great detail about medical topics such as oncology, paediatrics and epidemiology. Suturing bananas was a highlight for me and I would thoroughly recommend the course for anyone considering medicine as a career.’

The Physics Summer School provides an opportunity for bright students to explore some of the most exciting and challenging ideas in contemporary physics. The Summer School is split into two parts: Part 1 focuses on classical mechanics and astrophysics and is open to GCSE and A-level students. Part 2 focuses on quantum mechanics and relativity and is open to students who will have completed at least one year of A-level mathematics.

‘Challenging, but great fun, the Physics course was a fantastic opportunity to gain an insight into some of the fundamental principles that govern our world, giving me a better idea of what Physics at University might be like. From learning about the abstract world of Quantum Mechanics to discussing black holes and teleportation, the course left me astounded by both the amount we already know, and how much we have yet to discover!’

In addition to these highlighted courses, we also offer courses in English Literature, Philosophy, Economics, International Relations, Politics, Mathematics and Dentistry.

Bursaries

Debate Chamber is committed to ensuring that financial circumstances do not prevent any student from attending our events. Students can apply for bursaries covering up to 95% of the course fee through our website.

How can my students attend?

All the Summer School events will be held at University of London venues in Bloomsbury, Central London, and will take place in July and August 2019. Please note that these courses are not residential, and accommodation must be arranged independently if required.

There have been many takes on this question and one of the most common responses across the years has been that the school should work with parents to ensure that the young person in question takes the behaviour modification drugs prescribed.

Only when this is done, it is argued, can the individual modify her or his behaviour enough to be able to settle into mainstream education.

However recent research has cast doubt on this approach. Indeed research from the University of Exeter Medical School has found that the greatest progress of all occurs where the school undertakes three actions related to the pupils and students.

First, this most effective approach needs to include ensuring that all colleagues throughout the school understand ADHD and support the approach being used to help the pupil or student.

Second the approach must be undertaken with the wishes of parent. If the parent is very keen on constant medication, then this alternative approach will simply cause difficulty.

Third the approach needs to be talked through regularly with the pupil or student. This is not just a case of a single session where what is happening is explained. Rather opportunity needs to be found to return to the topic and the approaches used on regular occasions, helping the pupil or student reflect upon the progress being made.

But what is particularly interesting is that although this approach was designed as a way of working with students and pupils who are not taking medication it now turns out that these three fundamentals are just as important when working with those who are taking medication to modify their behaviour.

Where these three factors are all in place then, whether it is with or without medication, better progress and exam results can be expected.

It is to help with the multiplicity of such issues that relate to ADHD that we have produced “Helping ADHD pupils and students through school”.

It is a book which is available as a download, which means that you can then take any of the short articles that appear in the book and make them available for colleagues without any further charges for reproducing the information.

Because “anxiety” is such an everyday term, it can be easy to forget what it actually means. And that can be a shame, because for some students anxiety means they never achieve the results in school that could and indeed should be theirs.

At its simplest anxiety is a worry about a future event. The worry does not have to be realistic to affect behaviour, and sadly simply telling a person there is nothing to worry about or “you’ll be fine” often does not help at all.

Indeed such comments can make matters worse for an anxious student, because to the teenager the anxiety is completely real, as real as any pain following any injury, but quite often far more debilitating. That it is irrational, only makes it worse.

And here we see the problem that we as teachers face. If we have not suffered from anxiety it is hard to appreciate how debilitating it is and how difficult it is to overcome.

Worry about the future is built in to all of us; indeed it helps stop us taking too many risks. Anxiety, however, is worry that is out of control and unrealistic. A desperate concern about what will happen in specific situations which has nothing to do with what actually happens.

Indeed no matter how many times the individual faces that worry and comes through it satisfactorily, the anxiety can be just as strong next time.

Worse, after a while each anxiety episode builds up, so in the end it is always there in the background or foreground, never allowing the student to relax or escape.

Fortunately one short-term intervention programme with students who suffer in this way can result in a wholly different outcome. One in which anxiety is reduced to more normal levels.

Such a change can be achieved through a short period of intervention with a small group of secondary school students – and the big bonus is that there is external funding available for this type of intervention so that there is no cost at all to the school.

If you feel that you have some students in your school who are not reaching their full potential because of anxiety or related issues, and you would like to make use of external funding to help these students, I would ask you to get in touch.

We have already worked with numerous schools across the country and now have additional time and funding available to come to your school and work with the students you nominate. There are more details of our work with pupils with anxiety at on the Anxiety section of our website.

If you would like to discuss the options without any obligation please do call 0345 3192 666 or 0203 6677 294 or email gemma@NLP4Kids.org

If you’re anything like the teachers I know then I can almost guarantee you are constantly hit with the feeling that there are not enough hours in the day to get everything done.

I want to be respectful of your time so I’ll keep this short. I am in the process of creating some study hack posters which will look great on classroom walls and will be of great value to students. If you would be interested in receiving free pdf copies to print out then please do email me.

I’ve included 3 of the hacks below:

Go Cold Turkey – The website ‘getcoldturkey.com’ is essential for those who are easily distracted by surfing the web. People use Cold Turkey because once you start a block, there’s no turning back. By default, timers are locked until your timer is up and the weekly schedule can be locked until a certain time.

Pomodoro Technique – Set a timer, get serious about studying for 25 minutes and off you go. Reward yourself with a five-minute break afterwards. Repeat 3 times and give yourself an hour off. It’s easy and very effective.

Maths Genius – khanacademy.org is a fantastic website that allows students to repeat a particular topic multiple times and become really confident with the subject matter.

The videos incorporate all learning styles, and many people have used them to study up to degree level mathematics in their own time.

If you are still reading this then I hope you’ve found this helpful so far. We share many different and effective study techniques in our motivational seminars delivered by our team of military veterans. They relate their personal stories too which students find incredibly inspiring and helps motivate them to try harder. We deliver one hour seminars for up to 100 students for £399.

If you would be interested to find out more then feel free to contact me.

Ed had been a teacher for more than thirty years, working in several London boroughs. He started out as a supply teacher, then moved on to be a subject teacher, head of year and head of department.

Now and again he would recount some of the more “grisly” goings on in whichever school he was working at the time…..and it wasn’t only the students he got “naffed off” with…… (but that’s another story, as they say).

If there was one thing he felt strongly and got so angry about it was when students came to his lessons without the basics, i.e. they turned up without a pen, pencil, ruler, etc.

He was well read, an experienced teacher and planned his lessons carefully, so he regarded any delay in starting a lesson as a personal insult. His view was “If I take the trouble to plan my lessons and make them relevant and interesting, then why the heck can’t my students bring a pen and pencil with them?”

Thankfully, a couple of years before he retired, he found out about the “Student Essentials” set.

“If I’d known about this product thirty years ago then my life as a teacher would have been much easier and my students would almost certainly have got a lot more benefit from my lessons.”

The “Student Essentials” set is all about providing students with the basics they need and cutting out wasted time at the beginning of lessons….result: Improved productivity in both teaching and learning.

The “Student Essentials” set consists of three quality black ink ballpens, two full length HB pencils, an eraser, pencil sharpener and a 15 cm ruler, all packed in a clear “exam friendly” PVC wallet with a zip slider (size: 230 x 155 mm). It’s ideal to sell to your students (or maybe even give them away !) or use as prizes or incentives. From only 85p each, ex vat it’s a simple, yet cost effective way of helping both teachers and students be more productive.

The “Student Essentials” set can be obtained from Signpost Educational Ltd. who can be contacted on: email: signpost@talk21.com or tel 020 7515 1797 or you can visit their website:

The Debate Chamber Summer Schools offer students age 15-18 the opportunity to find out more about some fascinating subjects, prepare for university applications, meet like-minded peers and get to grips with some tough intellectual challenges.

The material will be challenging (for the older age-group, about the level of difficulty one might expect in the first year at university), but the atmosphere will be relaxed, with plenty of discussion, debate, and opportunities for students to shape the direction of classes.

Working in groups of 12 – 14 students over several days offers participants a real chance to get to know tutors and fellow students and to explore the topics or questions that particularly interest them.

The Law Summer School offers an exciting and challenging introduction to the legal profession, and is aimed at students who wish to take their first steps towards a legal career or Law degree. With options top specialise in particular areas of interest, this course includes mini-lectures on key areas of the law, seminar discussions on tricky and controversial legal questions, lively group negotiations and activities, and concludes with a full mock trial in which students take the role of barristers for the prosecution or defence.

‘The Summer Law School was an exhilarating and unforgettable five days. It gave me great insight into the theories of law and how they are implemented in real court cases; and also provided me with the opportunity to meet other young people with similar interests to me.’

The History Summer School gives students the opportunity to ask some of the deeper and more philosophical questions about how we relate to and interpret the past. A combination of engaging discussions, formal debates, lectures, group presentations and close individual reading of primary and secondary source material will help students to get a realistic sense of what undergraduate study is really like. This is also a really social course, and students often make friendships which continue on into university.

‘I enjoyed every minute of this Summer School and would recommend it to anyone who has a passion for history! I was able to learn about parts of history which I had never encountered before. The variety of topics and the fantastic tutors definitely made the course worthwhile.’

The Maths Summer School is an opportunity for very mathematically able students to indulge their passion for problem-solving and stretch their understanding of a range of topics in pure and applied maths. This Summer School is particularly appropriate for students who may be considering further study of mathematics at undergraduate level, or who are interested in related disciplines such as physics, computing or engineering.

‘The Maths Summer School is great fun! Everyone is so friendly and I learned so much. It is a great opportunity to expand your mathematical knowledge beyond the school syllabus. I would definitely recommend it!’

In addition to these highlighted courses, we also offer courses in English Literature, Philosophy, Economics, International Relations, Politics, Physics, Dentistry and Medicine.

Bursaries

Debate Chamber is committed to ensuring that financial circumstances do not prevent any student from attending our events. Students can apply for bursaries covering up to 95% of the course fee through our website.

How can my students attend?

All the Summer School events will be held at University of London venues in Bloomsbury, Central London, and will take place in July and August 2019. Please note that these courses are not residential, and accommodation must be arranged independently if required.

A recent study by the Youth Mental Health First Aid in Schools programme has confirmed what many of us have seen day by day: the taboo surrounding mental health issues remains a fundamental barrier which stops pupils and students speaking openly about any problems they perceive.

Indeed research by the NASUWT union last year revealed that, although 98 per cent of teachers have contact with pupils who they believe are experiencing mental health issues, 46 per cent report never having received any training on youth mental health.

However the report has shown that a small number of schools are making progress in facing the issue of helping pupils and students to deal with the problems they are facing.

And thus the question is asked, how can we help improve the mental well-being of pupils and students? It is a most important question, not least because pupils and students who have the ability to prevent mild conditions from becoming major problems cope better than those who don’t have this skill.

And this is what NLP4Kids offers. Helping pupils and students communicate their thoughts and feelings with others, helping them make meaningful relationships, and ultimately helping them improve their employment opportunities.

If you feel that you have some pupils and students in your school who are not reaching their full potential because of mental health issues, and you would like to make use of external funding to help these children, I would ask you to get in touch.

We have already worked with numerous schools across the country and now have additional time and funding available to come to your school and work with the children you nominate. There are more details of our work at http://nlp4kids.org.uk/positive

If you would like to discuss the options without any obligation please do call 0345 3192 666 or 0203 6677 294 or email gemma@NLP4Kids.org

Students are always interested in people who come from significantly different backgrounds from themselves – sports stars, celebrities, entrepreneurs…people whose lives are totally different from their own.

We currently have a team of military veteran speakers touring the country and are on a mission to inspire students to increase their aspirations and motivate them to be the best they can possibly be.

Our speakers draw upon their unique experiences of success and failure to convey the value of hardwork and commitment to get the best in life.

Schools and academies regularly invite us to work with their Year 11 students prior to the new year, so our study techniques can be incorporated early in preparation for the exams ahead.

The good news is that we are making our sessions even more affordable by offering a one hour seminar to 100 of your students for £399.

During the session we cover:

– How to be self motivated

– Inspirational stories of success

– Strategies to plan your work

– Study skills to ‘get the edge’

– Revision techniques.

If you are interested and would like to know more, then please feel free to contact me for a no obligation chat.

In addition, if you know of any other schools or academies which would benefit from one of our military speakers working with their students, I would be very grateful if you were to forward my details across to them.

Of course we all get frustrated with pupils and students who are not using their natural talent or native ability and who could do so much better at school, but simply won’t settle down to work.

However, such a lack of application is not just something that is observed in the classroom or with homework. It gets reported in all walks of life.

Employers constantly see young staff who could really get on in the business but who have a certain resistance to being told what to do. The same is found in sport – athletes, footballers, swimmers, etc – all with a natural ability that could give them a career in the sport, who simply will not train properly or refuse to look after their bodies.

And then again it is there in the arts – the talented actor who won’t focus in rehearsals, the musician who won’t practise…

So it is probably not surprising when we find it in school, when attitude gets in the way of what could be achieved.

The problem is, with all these cases, that once the poor attitude sets in it is quite hard to shift, not least because attitude is a habit, and habits are incredibly easy to pick up and very difficult to remove.

Difficult – but not impossible. For with a clarity of purpose it is possible to make a change in attitude and behaviour happen in virtually every individual – as long as we can encourage parents to play a central role in the issue of the changing attitudes and behaviour of pupils and students.

Our argument is that if ways can be found to bring parents who might not normally associate strongly with the school, into the school’s approach, then change can happen more quickly and become more solidly embedded within the school and within the pupil or student.

From these concepts emerged a series of formal school policies and everyday approaches which are set out in detail in our report “Improving attitudes, managing behaviour and reducing exclusions.”

The volume is available as a download only for £14.95, inclusive of VAT, with the right to reproduce the volume in full or in parts to colleagues in the school.

The Debate Chamber Summer Schools offer students age 11-18 the opportunity to find out more about some fascinating subjects, prepare for university applications, meet like-minded peers and get to grips with some tough intellectual challenges.

The material will be challenging (for the older age-group, about the level of difficulty one might expect in the first year at university), but the atmosphere will be relaxed, with plenty of discussion, debate, and opportunities for students to shape the direction of classes. It is an environment conducive to getting to grips with new ideas.

Working in small groups (usually around 14 students per group) over several days offers participants a real chance to get to know tutors and fellow students and to explore the topics or questions that particularly interest them.

Highlights for students aged 15-18:

The Summer Law School in three distinct five-day Parts to allow time for more cases, more analysis and more debate on some of the most intriguing legal questions. Students can choose to focus on Criminal Law, Civil Law or International Law, or to attend all three Parts for a comprehensive introduction to legal study.

The International Relations Summer School will introduce the central theories involved in the academic study of IR – realism, liberalism, constructivism and Marxism – and will then look at a range of detailed case studies in order to apply, test and explore these theories. Topics covered will include military intervention, international law, development aid, feminism and foreign policy, regional sessions looking at China and the Middle East, and the European response to the migration crisis.

The Medicine Summer School offers a series of two-day events with specialist sessions on cardiology, paediatrics, oncology, emergency medicine and many other topics – enabling students to attend a wide-ranging introduction or select the sessions most relevant to their interests.

Our Mathematics and Physics Summer Schools now offer options for students at GCSE, and also for those who have completed the first year of A Level study. These five-day events offer a challenging and rigorous exploration of theory and application, with a focus on developing practical problem-solving skills.

We also have courses in Economics, History, Classical Civilisations, Philosophy and Politics (all for students aged 15-18).

Last but not least, we also have a smaller number of courses available for younger students (ages 11-14) in Law, Medicine, Creative Writing and Science subjects.

Practical Details:

All the Summer School events will be held at University of London venues in Bloomsbury, Central London, and will take place in July and August 2019. Please note that these courses are not residential, and accommodation must be arranged independently if required.

For around 1000 years Roman numerals was the counting system of western civilisation. Which is odd considering it is so clunky and difficult to use.

It’s biggest problem, of course, is that it has no zero – one moves from IX (9) to X (10). And without zero maths gets at best frustrating, at worst fiendish.

But when we ask “what is zero?” and answer “nothing” we are merely using one word to explain another – we are not saying what zero is, as happens when we ask “what is a chair?”

To make sense of zero, and thus our whole numbering system, we each need a particular part of the brain to be able to decode the concept of number in general.

And where that brain function isn’t working properly, no matter how much teaching in the standard way continues, the individual will struggle to learn.

But just as with dyslexics and the spelling of words, teaching in the conventional way does not work – the pupils and students need a different approach, which deals with the concept of maths in a totally new way.

This is why the Dyscalculia Centre not only offers a diagnostic test for dyscalculia, but also provides an analysis of that person’s areas of difficulty and a range of teaching materials suitable to that individual.

The Dyscalculia Diagnostic Test is taken on-line, and generally lasts about 15 or 20 minutes. When it has been completed you will receive a detailed report identifying the problem areas and the actions that can be taken to help the individual overcome these issues and the relevant teaching materials.

The materials can also be copied so that, where appropriate, the parents can also work with the pupil at home. You’ll find more information about the Dyscalculia Centre’s on-line test for dyscalculia on our website.

Testing costs £59.95 per individual. Where three tests are booked together the price is £49.95 each. When 10 tests are booked together the price is £45.95 each.

However if you are working in a school which rejects the notion of dyscalculia or which for other reasons will not fund the use of our test, please get in touch with details as we may be able to help you through our Bursary scheme.

Once you have purchased the test/s each one can then be used at any time. The cost includes taking the test, a specific report in relation to the individual taking the test, and resources relevant to that individual which can be used to aid progress in maths.

It’s not a trick question, but it might be one you’ve never thought about. Why did counting with Roman numerals come to an end after almost 1000 years of use.

The answer is nothing to do with all that XL and VIII business – it is something quite different from that. In fact it wasn’t something in Roman counting that caused the problem, it was the lack of something.

And that something was zero.

The Romans didn’t think of nothing, because for them there was always something. If there was nothing, there was nothing to count, nothing to discuss. If Lucius owed Marcus five apples and had the five to give his pal, that was the end of counting. It wasn’t that Lucius now had zero apples. There was no number 0 so there was no issue. Apples were gone from the agenda.

Now of course we have zeros and everything is fine – except for around four children in every 100 who find the whole issue of zero very odd, and rather disturbing. Indeed some of these youngsters find the whole concept of number rather bizarre.

Fortunately, there are ways of teaching the meaning of number and time to young people who suffer from this type of problem; young people who are often called dyscalculic. But these ways are somewhat different from the conventional approaches to maths.

Understanding Dyscalculia: An Introduction for Schools examines the origins of dyscalculia and sets out the methods of working available which can help those with dyscalculia overcome their problems with maths.

The book can be copied to give out in full or part to other members of staff in school, to worried parents, and to governors, so that everyone can share in the awareness of what dyscalculia is, and how it can be tackled.

Research suggests that most children who gain appropriate help in school can overcome their dyscalculic difficulties and achieve an acceptable grade in secondary school examinations, thus allowing entry into further and higher education.

Understanding Dyscalculia: An Introduction for Schools is available as a download which can be printed out, copied and given to colleagues within the school for £14.95, including VAT.

ISBN: 978 1 86083 614 5 Order code: T1628 – please quote with order.

You can purchase the download copy of the volume

On the phone with a school order number or credit card at 01604 880 927

UK ISA specialist, True Potential Investor, investigates the effects of the growing population. Click here to see the infographic.

The UK population is growing, reaching an estimated 65.1 million people in 2015 and projected to pass 70 million people by 2026. What effect will a growing population have on the amount that will need to be invested by the government into the UK’s economy, though? Here, we take a look at key stats of previous generations to try and forecast the same parameters but for generations to come…

Understanding Gross Domestic Product

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is used throughout this infographic. It represents the monetary value of all the finished goods and services that is produced within a country’s borders within a specific time period.

All private and public consumption is included within GDP, as does investments, government outlays, private inventories, paid-in construction costs and foreign balance of trade — whereby exports are added and imports are subtracted. In essence, GDP broadly measures the overall economic activity of a nation and indicates its economic health and gains an idea of its standard of living.

Silent Generation

Also known as Traditionalists, the Silent Generation were named as such as they were expected to be seen and not heard. Due to growing up through the Great Depression and the Second World War, this is a generation who considered work a privilege and held the belief that you earn your own way through hard work.

Baby Boomers

Baby boomers were named as such as there was a ‘baby boom’ in the years that followed the end of the Second World War. Due to witnessing both the Women’s Liberation movement and the Civil Rights movement, this generation is known to challenge the status quo. They also like to seek immediate gratification and attempt to fulfil personal goals.

Generation X

Sometimes referred to as the MTV Generation as they witnessed the growing popularity of music videos and, more specifically, the emergence of the MTV channel, Generation X also lived through the fall of the Berlin Wall. As a result, this generation is independent, skeptical and self-sufficient, not to mention valuing a work/life balance.

Millennials

Also known as Generation Y, Millennials experienced an upbringing where they were increasingly surrounded by computers and technology. TV shows became popular during their childhood too, while they also witnessed the girl’s movement. As a result, this generation is confident, sociable and optimistic. They also don’t always understand their limitations and value a sense of achievement and multi-tasking.

Centennials

Often also referred to as Generation Z, iGen and Post-Millennials, this group lived through 9/11 and its aftermath, witnessed a worldwide economic recession and read countless news reports about war. As such, Centennials are known to be more self-aware, self-reliant and driven, as well as socially minded but cautious.

Thoughts for generations to come

From analysing the trends of previous generations, here’s a few points to consider for what might be to come for the generations to come…

As well as the UK’s population continuing to grow, so too has the nation’s GDP and real households’ disposable income per head.

Following a dip as the Baby Boomer generation was reaching adulthood, the UK’s employment rate has continued to increase.

The UK’s unemployment rate did increase as the Baby Boomer generation reached adulthood too. However, in the generations that followed, the unemployment rate has continued to drop.

It would be very difficult to forecast the nation’s rate of inflation in the years to come. As showcased when analysing the previous generations, Great Britain’s Historic CPI inflation rate has altered in a manner that doesn’t appear to follow a trend and certainly cannot be compared with the trends of any other parameter covered.

Every child with poor communication skills has, quite obviously, difficulty in listening, understanding, and self-expression. Which is to say, that child has difficulties with every aspect of learning.

As research has shown, this problem affects a huge number of children. Ican, for example, has suggested that at least 10% of young people across the UK have communication difficulties severe enough to be hindering their learning.

These children invariably also have difficulties in areas such as problem-solving and maintaining relationships.

Many agree that what is needed in order to overcome such problems is a way to learn effective two-way interactive communication so that they can participate both in the formal side of their education and the social side of being at school.

But the problem is, how can this be arranged within the current financial situation?

We know that it is vital for children to be able to express themselves openly and articulate their thoughts and feelings. We know that language is an integral part of our processing of daily events through our thoughts.

And beyond this we know that if we do not have the skills to process daily events internally then our mental health and well-being suffer.

But that still leaves the question, how can change be effected?

NLP4kids works in this area with many schools around the UK, and our work includes helping schools access government funding specifically set aside for this sort of project – thus effectively making our services available free of charge to the school.

If you would like to know more about our work in improving students’ communication skills and about the funding, please do have a look at our communication skills webpage.

To discuss the options without any obligation please do call 0345 3192 666 or 0203 6677 294 or email me at gemma@NLP4Kids.org

If you your school is not already employing a registered Play Therapist, you could use the Play Therapy UK placement scheme provided by our accredited training providers APAC in collaboration with Leeds Beckett University.

This year there will be about 300 trainees from all over the UK looking for placements to work therapeutically with primary school pupils who have emotional, behaviour and mental health issues.

They will be clinically supervised in providing 100 hours of sessions (typically seeing 8 pupils throughout the year).

All you have to provide is a safe, confidential play room and a budget of about £300 for equipment and materials. ie a cost to the school of roughly £3 per session.

In addition, the placements will conduct parent interviews, assessments, measure outcomes for the children and also for your objectives – how you want therapy to benefit your school and provide regular progress reports.

Introduced in 1996 the “one piece” Postura chair was the first classroom chair to be manufactured from a single mould of polypropylene. Today hundreds of thousands of these chairs are in use throughout the UK in schools, colleges and nurseries.

What’s so special about the “one piece” Postura chair…..?

Before the introduction of the Postura chair, most classroom chairs were made either of wood or a metal frame which was fixed to a polypropylene “shell” (the seat) by screws or rivets. If you have ever worked in a school then you will almost certainly have come across broken or vandalised chairs ………How do they get broken?

The weak link is the fixings which join the shell to the frame. They can usually be unscrewed or damaged, either deliberately or by the constant stresses and strains of wear by students for several hours everyday, week after week, month after month and year after year. Sometimes they can be repaired using a replacement shell or frame but more often than not such repairs tend to be of a temporary nature.

The Postura chair has done away with all this. Its one piece design means there are no screws or rivets to be broken or damaged. When you take delivery of Postura chairs you get a TWENTY year warranty with each one. That’s how confident are the manufacturers that you’ll get at least twenty years of trouble free use from each chair.

How can the Postura chair save us hundreds of pounds?

Simple. The warranty covers any possible manufacturing defects for 20 years.

This means that you’ll get 20 years of trouble free classroom seating from as little as 35p per term per chair…and this cost is based on the largest size, being used by ages 11 upwards…for primary and nursery schools the cost is even less ! So you can wave goodbye to broken and vandalised chairs…..no more time wasted in repairs, no more “wonky” chairs, no more expenditure for replacements when they have become unrepairable. It all adds up to big savings when you switch to Postura classroom chairs from the traditional classroom chair.

What about improving students’ concentration….?

If you’ve ever sat on an uncomfortable chair you’ll know….well, how uncomfortable it is. You change your position, you fidget, you can’t sit comfortably and if you’re in a meeting the chances are you’re just as concerned with your sitting position than concentrating on what is being said. It’s no different with your students, which is why the Postura chair was designed to be ergonomically beneficial …… to be comfortable and encourage good posture, so students can concentrate on lessons rather than continually trying to make themselves comfortable.

………..and here’s an additional reason to order Postura chairs now.

Central Educational Supplies Ltd., one of the leading distributors of Postura chairs in the UK, have held their 2017 prices throughout 2018….so your organisation can make even greater savings when ordering from this company.

If you’d like to know more about these excellent chairs or make an order, please visit the website of: Central Educational Supplies Ltd, www.centraleducational.co.uk

There are several ways of classifying emotions, and one that is often found helpful contains four emotional pairs: joy-sadness, anger-fear, trust-distrust, surprise-anticipation.

Psychologists have long argued about the best way to list all emotions, but whatever approach is used anger most certainly is one of the fundamental human impulses.

And because anger is so basic to the human psyche it is hard to control simply by saying “don’t get so angry.”

The tendency to get angry is innate, automatic, and, when triggered, very fast and we have it, because in earlier times getting angry automatically could enhance one’s chances of survival.

But, obviously, the classroom is not a life or death struggle, and thus anger in the classroom is not helpful. However helping students control angry reactions not just to everyday experiences but to accumulated problems across time can be difficult.

For anger expressed in the classroom can leave the teacher in an invidious position, wanting to offer emotional support to a student in difficulty, while at the same time having a duty towards everyone in the class.

And yet it is possible for students with anger issues to be fully integrated back into mainstream schooling.

This approach involves not just managing a student’s behaviour but also seeking out and dealing with the issues that are causing this behaviour as well as helping the student find the best emotional coping strategies to resolve the problem.

And this is what NLP4Kids offers: helping students communicate their thoughts and feelings with others, helping them make meaningful relationships, and ultimately helping them improve their employment opportunities all through bringing their anger under control.

If you feel that you have some students in your school who are not reaching their full potential because of anger and related issues, you may find our website helpful.

We have already worked with numerous schools across the country and now have additional time and funding available to come to your school and work with the students you nominate. There are more details of our work at http://nlp4kids.org.uk/schools-co-uk/

If you would like to discuss the options without any obligation please do call 0345 3192 666 or 0203 6677 294 or email gemma@NLP4Kids.org

Working in fashion is a dream for many people — some have a creative flair when it comes to clothing and others aspire to learn the workings behind creating a garment. But how do you land a job in this field? Is there any preparation you can do to better your chances of landing this sort of role?

Retailers of men’s blazers and other menswear essentials, QUIZMAN and retailers of maxi dresses Quiz Clothing give us their top tips for breaking into the industry:

The UK fashion industry

Globally, the fashion industry is worth 2% of the world’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and between 2006 and 2016, it grew steadily at 5.5% annually, despite economic turmoil. With this growth, comes a range of employment opportunities. In the UK, around 555,000 people are employed in fashion, textiles and fashion retail. And, with the growth of online usage by consumers, more opportunities have become available for people to get involved in the industry remotely.

One key role in the industry is a clothing designer.

What does a clothing designer do?

As the title suggests, the main role of a clothing designer is to create designs for garments before they go to production. There are a range of industries that you could work in; high fashion, designer ready-to-wear fashion, high-street fashion, children’s wear or costume designer. The role of a costume designer is different as it’s the creation of looks for TV, film and theatre. This might involve designing pieces from scratch or pulling together outfits from a costume wardrobe. You may find a niche that you focus on too such as menswear, hats or accessories.

Being a fashion designer is a fast-paced and demanding role. Many designers work against a set of design instructions called a brief — this might have been set by the creative director or the party that is going to sell the garments and it’s their requirements for the design.

Naturally, you need to be able to create fashion sketches and technical drawings. This could be by hand or through computer aided design. Not only is this useful for those who might be buying your goods, but it’s essential for the manufacturers who must have accurate measurements to work against.

A creative eye will help you produce concept and mood boards. These are arrangements of images, materials, patterns and pieces of text that create a collage that can be presented to others. Mood boards can represent the theme of a design collection or one garment and it represents your inspiration behind the piece. If you are pitching a collection to a potential seller, this will help them get an idea of the type of clothing that you produce and see if it’s in line with their own brand.

You’ll also be required to do some budgeting. This is to estimate costs for materials and manufacturers and you may have to negotiate with suppliers to try and gain a better price. Many fashion designers have budgets to work against and this can also be a constraint to their creativity.

A big part of a fashion designers’ role is to spot and forecast trends. This might be trends in styles, colours and prints. Designers then need to be able to replicate these popular styles in their own work.

Although it can be a stressful role, it can also be highly rewarding to see your designs come to life. Think you’re up to the challenge? What grades and experience do you need to succeed?

Relevant subjects to study and work experience

There are some things that you can do to further your chances of becoming a fashion designer.

Studying Design, Textiles and Fashion related subjects are all good ways of building up your knowledge in the field. These subjects will also build your experience of technical drawings and fashion sketches, whilst developing your understanding of style and design.

Higher education qualifications such as an undergraduate degree will be helpful too. Courses at different universities vary but you will find degrees related to fashion design at many universities. Related topics such as fashion marketing, buying, graphic design and textiles would be useful too.

There are apprenticeships available in fashion too. You may start out as a design assistant and learn the workings of the trade before progressing yourself. This is a great way to gain hands on experience without full-time education.

Build up a portfolio of your work. This could be mood boards that you’ve made, technical drawings, or photographs of pieces that you’ve created. Many colleges, universities and employees will ask for these as you go through your career so it’s a good idea to start creating one as soon as possible.

The sector is very competitive when it comes to jobs so make sure that you’re networking when you can and meeting people in the industry. Try and get work experience in studios or workshop where you can so that you can understand what goes on in these spaces and talk confidently about it to future employees.

Organising work experience for SEN students can be something of a challenge, for not only must it be tailored to the needs of a young person, but it must also be tailored to the needs of a young person with a SpLD or who may view the world in a wholly different way.

So, to help your SEN students to succeed during their work experience placement (and to make organising their work experience placement easier for you) SEN Press has devised the Work Experience Series.

The Work Experience Series contains a wealth of information, support, and resources about what your students can expect when undertaking work experience and how to demonstrate good work etiquette in the array of situations they’re likely to find themselves in.

Not only has the value pack’s content been specifically designed to respond to the way in which students with autism typically view the world, but it will also respond to their learning needs – it has been designed for older students with a reading age of around seven.

The Work Experience Series uses an approach that we have adopted through a series of six student reading books each focussed on a particular work setting, ranging from an animal charity to a fast-food restaurant, from a garage to a supermarket.

The six reading books, each of which builds upon the themes of the series (time-keeping, showing respect, and so on) are accompanied by a set of copiable worksheets and teachers’ resources, supplied in spiral-bound format for easy use.

The teachers’ resources also include around 100 A4 pages of additional resources including keyword flashcards, word searches, and spot the difference pictures.

Finally the pack also includes a CD rom which has a set of eBooks and whiteboard resources. These include real voice audio tracks of the eBook versions of the readers and a wide range of interactive activities so that the students can practise various life skills.

The complete set of resources containing two copies of each of the six readers, the complete teacher book, and the CD Rom is available for £139 plus VAT. Individual elements from the pack are also available separately.

A story-based scheme addressing the Foreign Language Programmes of Study for teaching Spanish at KS2

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The pack includes audio-enhanced e-storybooks for each of the 14 stories. The stories are acted out by native Spanish speakers bringing the stories to life. The e-storybooks can be shared with the class using an interactive whiteboard, read individually or in small groups.The Learn Spanish with Luis y Sofía 1a Parte Starter Pack is based around a story featuring a young brother (Luis) and sister (Sofía) and their friends and family. The topic-based stories are written entirely in Spanish, use simple sentences and introduce key vocabulary and language structures.

The teacherʼs book contains lesson plans for each story, translations of the stories and exercises, games and activities focusing on enabling pupils to communicate in Spanish.

The scheme is designed with non-specialists in mind and will make implementing the National Curriculum for England easy. Self-assessment sheets can be used to monitor children’s progress and ensure coverage of all the Programmes of Study.

Because “anxiety” is such an everyday term, it can be easy to forget what it actually means. And that can be a shame, because for some pupils anxiety means they never achieve the results in school that could and indeed should be theirs.

At its simplest anxiety is a worry about a future event. The worry does not have to be realistic to affect behaviour, and sadly, simply telling a person there is nothing to worry about or “you’ll be fine” often does not help at all.

Indeed such comments can make matters worse for an anxious child, because to the child the anxiety is completely real, as real as any pain following any injury, but quite often far more debilitating. That it is irrational, only makes it worse.

And here we see the problem that we, as teachers, face. If we have not suffered from anxiety it is hard to appreciate how debilitating it is and how difficult to overcome.

Also we must understand that although many children do worry abut tests and exams, that “worry” or “nervousness” is not the same as “anxiety”.

Worry about the future is built in to all of us, indeed it helps keep us safe. Anxiety however is worry that is out of control and unrealistic. A desperate concern about what will happen in specific situations which has nothing to do with what actually happens.

Indeed no matter how many times the individual faces that worry and comes through it satisfactorily, the anxiety can be just as strong next time.

Worse, after a while, each anxiety episode builds up, so in the end it is always there, haunting the child, never allowing the child to relax or escape.

Fortunately one short-term intervention programme during the primary school years with children who suffer in this way can result in a wholly different outcome, one in which anxiety is reduced to more normal levels.

Such a change can be achieved through a short period of intervention with a small group of children – and the big bonus is that there is external funding available for this type of intervention so that there is no cost at all to the school.

If you feel that you have some children in your school who are not reaching their full potential because of anxiety or related issues, and you would like to make use of external funding to help these children, I would ask you to get in touch.

We have already worked with numerous schools across the country and now have additional time and funding available to come to your school and work with the children you nominate. There are more details of our work with pupils with anxiety at on the Anxiety section of our website.

If you would like to discuss the options without any obligation please do call 0345 3192 666 or 0203 6677 294 or email gemma@NLP4Kids.org

The problem with the Middle East is that it is not so much a question of what is happening – but rather why it is happening. And, of course, the “why?” questions are always the hardest ones to face.

Indeed a quick glance at virtually all of today’s news media will show that much of the time the media does not cover the issue “why?” at all, in relation to most stories.

This makes gaining an understanding of what is happening in the Middle East hard enough for adults. But for teenagers it becomes nigh on impossible, since they have followed this timeline of events for a much shorter period of time.

As a result confusion and a lack of understanding about what is going on in the Middle East is likely to be much greater.

So what can be done?

Our response was to form a charity, Middle East Education, which offers a FREE talk in your school that gives a balanced and factual look at the issues involved in the Middle East today.

We take in the differing interpretations of historical and present-day events in the region and work with the students to unravel its obvious complexity.

And what makes this approach particularly interesting for students is that it is given by two knowledgeable, articulate and lively speakers, one Muslim the other Christian or Jewish, with the talks accompanied by PowerPoint presentations containing many maps and photos, films, and animations.

Naturally questions and discussion by your students are encouraged, because our aim is not to push a particular point of view but to generate informed debate.

If you would like to find out more before registering your interest, simply visit our website where you will also find a number of free resources, including PowerPoints, activities and teachers’ notes, arranged by subject area and/or education level.

Then if you are interested in booking one of our FREE talks, simply email office@middleeastedu.co.uk with your preferred dates (ideally please do give us at least two different dates) and we’ll do our best to organise a mutually convenient time for us to visit your school.

Between Thursday 15 November and Saturday 17 November, Study Options will be holding Australian and New Zealand University Open Days. These are free information events aimed at students (and schools) who would like to find out more about university options in Australia and New Zealand.

Fifteen representatives from Australian and New Zealand universities will be present at the events to speak with prospective students in person. Study Options’ Open Days are held twice a year, in March and November, and are a great opportunity for students to get more information and talk to representatives from the universities face-to-face. For the majority of the universities, these are the only in-person events they undertake in the UK.

There is a lot more information available at www.studyoptionsopendays.com regarding venues, opening times and how to register. Please do let us know if you have any questions or if there is any further information we can provide.

Improvements in design and manufacture have meant that the quality and durability of student chairs have improved significantly. The result is that it’s now possible to obtain classroom chairs with a TWENTY year warranty.

That’s up to TWENTY years with NO replacement costs and NO repair bills…which, in a large school or college can save hundreds of pounds.

Designed not only to be comfortable, durable and virtually vandal proof but also to encourage good posture, the “Postura Plus” chair is available in sixteen attractive colours and six sizes, making it ideal for use across different departments and in both primary and secondary sectors.

For a limited period it’s possible to order Postura Plus chairs at 2017 prices ……. a saving of at least 45p per chair on what are already very competitive prices. So, if you have been considering adding to your stock of Postura Plus chairs or perhaps introducing them for the first time here is an opportunity to do so and save money at the same time.

The Casio FX 85GT+ and the Logik LK 83XP are excellent choices for your GCSE maths students. They both benefit from battery power with solar power back-up to provide extra reassurance for your students. Both calcs have a “natural display” function which enables students to enter expressions and data as shown in textbooks. As you would expect, the build quality of both calcs is excellent and both calcs benefit from a THREE year warranty. (excludes damage to the LCD).

The LogikLK 83XP has similar features to the CasioFX 85GT+ but without the “verify” and “recurring decimal” functions. Both calcs feature prime factorisation, random numbers, algebraic logic, multi-line replay, standard deviation, log / anti-log, hyperbolics etc and have a three year warranty and are available at short notice from Signpost Educational Ltd., The Logik LK 83XP is available from £ 5.29 each ex vat while the Casio FX 85GT+ starts from £ 7.75 each ex vat.

Every student with poor communication skills has, quite obviously, difficulty in listening, understanding, and self-expression. Such students will then also have difficulties in areas as diverse as problem-solving and maintaining relationships.

To overcome such problems these students need to learn effective two-way interactive communication so that they can participate both in the formal side of their education and the social side of being at school.

However research from Ican has suggested that at least 10% of young people across the UK have communication difficulties that are often not fully being picked up and addressed because of the individual and small group approaches that are needed to help such students.

Yet where these students can be helped to engage in rich, active, confident communication they can gain the skills that will allow them to benefit from the education that they receive. They will, in short, be able to express themselves openly and articulate their thoughts and feelings.

Further, as many psychological studies have shown, language is an integral part of our processing of daily events through our thoughts. If we do not have the skills to process daily events internally then our mental health and well being suffer.

And on top of all that, the importance of this issue can be further recognised by the fact that only 15% of children with communication difficulties go on to achieve 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (compared with 57% of all other young people.)

NLP4kids works in this area with many schools around the UK, and our work includes helping schools access government funding specifically set aside for this sort of project – thus effectively making our services available free of charge to the school.

If you would like to discuss the options without any obligation please do call 0345 3192 666 or 0203 6677 294 or email me at gemma@NLP4Kids.org

How would you feel about getting 2018 Postura Plus classroom chairs at 2017 prices….. and to cap it all how about a 20 year warranty on every chair you order?

Postura Plus chairs are manufactured from a single mould of polypropylene with no screws, bolts or other fixings to become loose or be vandalised. Their ergonomic design promotes enhanced user comfort which should at the same time improve your students concentration in lessons….. plus the 20 year warranty will make a dramatic dent in your organisations maintenance costs. Site managers like Postura Plus chairs as they have seen significant reductions in damage and vandalism.

What’s more, the Postura Plus range of one piece chairs is available in 16 colours and six sizes, right from nursery through schools to colleges and universities. Postura Plus chairs are already installed in thousands of UK schools and colleges, and not without good reason.

You can have all of these benefits at the same time when you order from Central Educational Supplies Ltd who have been supplying Potura Plus chairs for well over ten years.

Why not visit their website (www.centraleducational.co.uk) to find out more about Postura Plus chairs…and consider their 20 year warranty. How much could Postura Plus chairs save your organisation compared with traditional classroom chairs, not to mention the advantages of purchasing this years’ chairs at 2017 prices.

When this happens it’s frustrating, often disruptive, and always time-wasting……

But is there a solution?

Well, we believe there is. It’s called the “Student Essentials set,” a low cost but effective solution to the problems caused by students who turn up for lessons or exams without the basic kit.

The “Student Essentials set” consists of three quality black ink pens, two full length HB pencils, a 15 cm ruler, pencil sharpener and eraser, all packed in an “exam friendly” clear PVC wallet with a zip slider. From just 85p each (ex vat) the “Student Essentials set” is ideal to give (or perhaps sell) to your students so they’ll have what they need for almost all their lessons.

Find out more from Signpost Educational Ltd on 020 7515 1797 or visit their website:

How would you feel about getting 2018 Postura Plus classroom chairs at 2017 prices….. and to cap it all how about a 20 year warranty on every chair you order?

Postura Plus chairs are manufactured from a single mould of polypropylene with no screws, bolts or other fixings to become loose or be vandalised. Their ergonomic design promotes enhanced user comfort which should at the same time improve your students concentration in lessons.

What’s more, the Postura Plus range of one piece chairs is available in 16 colours and six sizes, right from nursery through schools to colleges and universities.

You can have all of these benefits at the same time when you order from Central Educational Supplies Ltd who have been supplying Potura Plus chairs for well over ten years.

Why not visit their website (www.centraleducational.co.uk) to find out more about Postura Plus chairs…and consider their 20 year warranty. How much could this save your organisation compared with traditional classroom chairs, not to mention the advantages of purchasing this years’ chairs at 2017 prices.

A conflation of our two most popular workshops into an all-day experience. ‘Ensuring Boys Matter’. Mengage takes elements of ‘raising boy’s achievement’ and ‘boys don’t cry’ to create a workshop focusing on supporting the achievement, emotional & mental health needs of boys and young men.

Encompassing a school day, delegates will experience –

Exploring – Experience of working with boys and what the current data is informing us

Act like a boy – Being boy positive and creating boy friendly facilities

What stops him – Barriers to learning and what we can do as a school

Enabling -Experiences from elsewhere and what works?

This is feedback for this course –

‘Mengage were so accommodating when I approached them about potential CPD training in school. I asked for a blend of their different training programmes and they came up with a perfect bespoke day to be delivered in school. We had 4 workshops which incorporated facts, theories, pedagogy, practical suggestions, and stimulated excellent professional debate.

Liam was a great trainer. He is warm, friendly and funny, which put all the delegates at ease quickly. This was so important, as people did not feel inhibited to ask questions or share their thoughts and experiences. His past life as a teacher meant that he pitched the workshops perfectly, and everyone found them valuable.

We learned so much in one day, in the comfort of our own school, which was a real bonus – Liam travelled a considerable distance to be with us. The cost of the day was incredibly good value, considering the number of staff who accessed the workshops throughout the day.

I would not hesitate in recommending Mengage to other schools and organisations’.

These workshops, if bought separately, would cost £1945. Mengage are happy to offer this merging of the two at £1495. Ideally it will be for up to 25 staff – but negotiations can be had around involving more. You can see more about the workshop by clicking here

The Casio FX 83GT+ is the UK’s best selling scientific calc… and deservedly so. It’s been setting the pace in many UK schools & colleges and is the first choice for GCSE exams for many students. From only £ 6.49 each, ex vat (200+), it’s an excellent buy.

But now there is a credible alternative…… It’s the Logik LK 83XP which has almost all the features of the FX 83GT Plus but with one big advantage…… it’s dual power. This combination of battery and solar power prolongs battery life and gives students extra reassurance, especially when used in exams.

The LK 83XP has a THREE year guarantee, excellent build quality and reliability and is suitable for all UK exams where a calculator is allowed. Features include: 252 functions, “natural (textbook) display,” check, correct and replay, stats calculations, prime factorisation, hard plastic keys, slide on case, etc.

It’s a calc which can see your students all the way from year 7 to GCSE and at a surprisingly modest price, from only £ 5.22 ex vat.

It appears that we are now approaching a world in which the boundaries between fact and fiction are vanishing fast.

And yet even so, we tend to expect our students to be able to tell the difference between the truth and the make believe. We don’t, for example, expect them to treat Wilkie Collins’ “The Moonstone” as a true account of history.

Nor would we want them to believe that Joseph Conrad’s “The Secret Agent” was exactly what life was like in the late 19th century. And yet it is and it isn’t. It is close enough to a portrayal of London at the time to be related to the truth, but it is not the truth itself.

And in many ways this is the value of the classic novel. It isn’t true in the sense that “most people have two legs” is true, or that “kangaroos are native to Australia” is true. But it is not so far from the truth as we might feel the notion that “the earth is flat” is not true.

Reading classic literature (which has its own unique take on the past, present or future) is, in fact, one of the most effective ways in which we can help our students to overcome the contemporary difficulty that much of the world has in terms of truth and lies.

And this is why we have Wordsworth Editions – reprints of the classics from as little as £1.88 each (with no delivery charge and no minimum order) covering authors from Robert Louis Stephenson to F Scott Fitzgerald. From Dickens to Mary Shelley.

And we also have our offer of a free book just in case you have not come across Wordsworth Editions before. To receive a free sample of one of our classics without any obligation please do email education@wordsworth-editions.com with your name and the school address, and we’ll put it in the post to you with our compliments.

Many children do suffer from anxiety in tests and exams, and generally there’s nothing wrong with that – a modest level of anxiety is a common human characteristic.

But when that anxiety is there consistently, it can mean that the child is going to suffer poor results at school which no amount of focus and hard work can put right. And it is a problem that can remain with them throughout their lives.

However, one short-term intervention programme during the primary school years with children who suffer in this way can result in a wholly different outcome. One in which anxiety is reduced to more normal levels.

Such a change can be achieved through a short period of intervention with a small group of children – and the bonus is that there is external funding available for this type of intervention so that there is no cost at all to the school.

Working with a small number of children in different ways through a short series of sessions, we are able to help such children overcome confidence issues, worries about their family or home life, and similar matters so that these children reach their potential.

If you feel that you have some children in your school who are not reaching their full potential because of anxiety and related issues, and you would like to make use of external funding to help these children, I would ask you to get in touch.

We have already worked with numerous schools across the country and now have additional time and funding available to come to your school and work with the children you nominate. There are more details of our work at http://nlp4kids.org.uk/schools-co-uk/

If you would like to discuss the options without any obligation please do call 0345 3192 666 or 0203 6677 294 or email gemma@NLP4Kids.org

The LOGIK brand of calculators has been used successfully in secondary schools and colleges during the past fifteen years. If you’re considering scientific calculators for the new school year then their two “flagship” models, the LK 183 and the LK 83XP are well worth considering.

Both calculators have a THREE year warranty (excludes damage to LCD) and are suitable for

KS 3, 4 and GCSE as well as scottish exams. Both calcs come with hard plastic keys, a slide-on case and all the features and functions your students will need for GCSE maths.

From only £ 3.69 each (ex vat) both calcs are also available in class sets of 30 in a Gratnells storage box with a foam insert and handy clip on lid.

Fitting a whole year’s worth of revision and lessons into just a couple of hours can be tough going for students. Exams are difficult enough as they are, but during the summer months, things can really heat up. According to the independent, students in buildings without air-conditioning attain worse grades during tests in the middle of a heatwave – by around 13%. So, just how widespread is this issue, and what can be done to help future students?

Feeling the heat

According to a study by the US National Bureau of Economic Research, heat has a significant impact on exam results. This study, which was picked up by numerous news outlets as the first major analysis of the correlation between higher temperatures and lower exam scores, took place over a 13-year time period and included 10 million US secondary school pupils. The study found that learning achievement fell by 1% for every 0.55°C increase to the average temperature. Any temperature exceeding 21°C was found to have a significant impact on learning, with anything above 32°C having even more of an effect. The effect of heat on learning was found to be particularly high at temperatures over 38°C.

The study also outlined that high temperatures only impacted exam scored on hot school days – hot weekends didn’t have an impact on achievement levels. Heat did affect educational time however, both at school and at home during homework time.

University challenges

Building on this, another study by Harvard University examined the effects of heat on students living in university accommodation. The study looked at university students during a heatwave – some stayed in rooms with air-conditioning and others stayed in rooms without. Ultimately, the students who stayed in the non-air-conditioned rooms were found to have scored much lower in both problem solving and memory tests.

The effects of heat aren’t limited to daylight hours, however – too much heat at night can also cause problems.

Trouble sleeping

During the UK summer heatwave of 2018, the Guardian reported an increase in sleep problems across the country. The sudden rise in temperature for a country so used to milder climates caused many people to feel irritable, tired, and less productive as a result.

Sleep medicine consultant Dr Michal Farquhar spoke to the Guardian spoke to the Guardian about the problem, stating that: “Britain isn’t really designed to deal with higher than average temperatures. Unlike warmer climates, our homes are designed to keep us warm in the winter more than to keep us cool in the summer, and air conditioning is relatively rare in private homes.”

He went on to explain how the ideal temperature for sleeping is rather restrictive at just 16-18°C, so a sudden temperature rise can cause a number of issues for many people – both at work and at school.

Cooling down

With the effects of climate change becoming more and more apparent, many of us are asking what we can do to help students overcome the heat.

Both Harvard University and the US National Bureau of Economic Research recommend using a good air conditioning unit in educational facilities, such as exam halls and classrooms. The institutions both noted that air-conditioning had a positive effect on reversing the damage to student exam scores caused by too much heat.

As outlined by the Guardian, however, air-conditioning is rarely found in the UK, especially in universities and schools. Historically, this makes a lot of sense, as the UK has never had a history of extended periods of high temperatures, so in the past, air conditioning wasn’t a wise decision financially. With summers getting hotter each year however, and heatwaves during summer becoming a regular occurrence, some have asked if it’s time for the British attitude towards the value of air-conditioning to change.

The National Education Union recommend that UK schools should have an action plan in place should temperatures exceed 26°C. They recommend measures such as encouraging drinking water in the classroom, moving pupils away from windows, limiting the use of computers and installing a good air conditioning system. Companies like Daikin, for example, can offer their expertise in fitting the right air-conditioning system for educational environments. If warmer summers are really here for the foreseeable future, the UK needs to adapt its buildings in order to keep people safe, comfortable and cool.

Have you considered accredited mentoring?

How to effectively engage young males with education and provide them with the support and encouragement they need to go on to bigger and better things is always a concern for staff.

Mentoring, as well as offering an evidence-based approach to work with young men, helps young men to achieve their academic and vocational potential, addresses concerns related to problematic behaviours – and provides go-to support and signposting to other services from someone they have built trust with.

The Unit Award in Mentoring Boys and Young Men is a Level 2 award providing your staff/students with an understanding of mentoring work. Whether it is for your staff to better engage with boys or for the boys themselves to support one another, mentoring is an approach that has been shown to work.

The workshop covering the award criteria is 4 hours long. Each staff/student undertaking the award will be provided with their own copy of the Mengage course book: Mentoring Male: A guide to mentoring work with boys and young men.A Level 2 certificate will be issued upon completion.

Feedback received – 23 staff in a Liverpool School said –

Rating delivery and knowledge of the trainer as a one (brilliant), collectively the group said, “The facilitator was engaging and informative. The case studies were informative and beneficial to our CPD. We would recommend the course to others as it was one of the best training courses that has been delivered to us.” Lord Derby Academy, Huyton

The workshop costs £1295 for up to 10 staff or up to 15 students or a mixture of both – works surprisingly well! Bigger groups are negotiable. You can see more about the workshop by clicking here.

For more information or to discuss a booking, you can contact Liam by email at liam@mengage.co.uk or by phone on 07788725318.

Alternatively, you can visit our website at www.mengage.co.uk to see what else we offer with regards to mental health and raising boys’ achievement.

Two days ago I got somewhat fed up when I heard that global warming had now passed a tipping point such that within a couple of months (or was that a couple of decades – I may have got confused) the earth would be too hot for humans.

Yesterday, however, the news said that the “next year is doomsday scenario” was at the extreme end of the scale of predictions, and I was probably safe to book my Christmas holiday to visit my daughter without worrying that the plane would melt en route.

Today, I learn that the Arctic Ocean used to be covered in a tiny fern called Azolla filiculoides that absorbed far more carbon dioxide than we put into the atmosphere now, and so created the cool planet. And with the genome having been sorted, it can be re-introduced so we’re all going to be safe after all.

Which is quite reassuring.

But here’s a thought. I studied the arts at A level and thereafter and never returned to science. So how come I can appreciate this story about the salvation of humankind and follow it with some degree of understanding?

I’d put that down to the fact that I read a lot. Not science books, but classic fiction which I started reading at school. Because through that classic fiction I met thousands of characters each of which had their own way of seeing the world, and that made me think.

Heathcliff got inside my head as did Sherlock Holmes, Fezziwig and Robin Hood, and all the time I kept asking “Why?” “Why is the character doing this?” “Why is the world like this?” “Why doesn’t one character see the the other’s perfidious nature?”

Yes perhaps it would have been good if I had had a broader scientific education, but I didn’t, and yet literature gave me the sort of enquiring mind that scientists often extol as the virtue of their subject.

Which is why my colleagues and I started Wordsworth Editions – reprints of the classics from as little as £1.88 each (with no delivery charge and no minimum order) covering authors from Conan Doyle to Oscar Wilde, Jules Verne to James Joyce.

If you would like to see what we have added new in 2018 those details are here. For a selection of the 50 texts most regularly bought by schools, taken from our full range of 400 titles, please do click here.

And we also have our offer of a free book just in case you have not come across Wordsworth Editions before. To receive a free sample of one of our classics without any obligation please do email education@wordsworth-editions.com with your name and the school address, and we’ll put it in the post to you with our compliments.

Of course there is one thing that all school suppliers seem to have in common. They like to tell you they are the best.

But really, how do you know for sure?

One way to find out is to ask a prospective supplier for some free samples of each product you are interested in, not least because if you find the supplier doesn’t want to give you a free sample, you might start to be a little suspicious about the product and its long term viability.

Which is why we offer free samples of all the products in our range. Items such as ID badges, accident books, absence pass books, hi viz vests, school water bottles, visitor books, printing on sports kit, lanyards, wristbands, school bags, etc, etc.

And there’s a bonus: if you send a copy of your school logo or badge, we’ll incorporate that into the free sample: and the free sample still remains absolutely free.

We know that what we offer is high quality and that the moment our customers in schools across Scotland see what we have, they are interested in making a purchase. So, free samples it is. And yes, in the unlikely event that you don’t want to place an order, the samples are yours to keep. We don’t ask for them back.

If you would like to see free samples from any of our ranges all you have to do is go to our web site, tick the box/es of the items you’d like to see, and we’ll send them to you.

Alternatively if you would like to see some pictures just go to our products page, scroll down a little and you’ll see a lot of pictures of what we have to offer.

Or, of course if you have a question, or want to talk about any particular part of our range, please do call us on on our freephone number of 0800 999 2776 or email us with any questions on office@ultimateeducation.co.uk

At a time when there have been increases in the price of classroom chairs it’s nice to be able to report that it’s still possible to purchase classroom chairs from an established UK manufacturer at very competitive prices.

It’s true that there is a limited colour range and in just one seat height (430 mm) but at these prices, AND with a FIVE year warranty, it’s hard to ignore the benefits of having extra seating eg. for exams, for fitting out temporary classrooms, or just for use in emergencies.

The “Poplar” classroom chair is available in black or blue from just £8.98 ex vat (200+) (slightly more for smaller quantities). Quick delivery can usually be arranged, subject to stock.

One of the nice things about UK Education News is that there is no tracking going on – those of us running the service don’t know who you are, where you are, what you are reading etc.

What’s more, as you will have seen, the site is also totally and utterly free, and we intend to keep it that way.

But the fact you are reading this means that you are on UK Education News, and hopefully enjoying the service that we offer. And so we’d like ask you a favour.

Could you send an email to one or two of your colleagues that says something like the example below. (You might find it a bit cheesy so please do write something of your own; I’m sure you’ll do an infinitely better job that I can).

———————-

To colleagues in the school:

I’m not sure if you read the free rolling news service UK Education News. But I do, and find it quite interesting. And the people who run the service have suggested that those of us who use the free service might pass a note on to one or two colleagues and friends to tell them about it.

It’s a site that carries education news headlines from the BBC, Guardian, Telegraph etc. You can simply click on a headline and then read the full story.

Postura Plus classroom chairs with a TWENTY year warranty can save schools and colleges hundreds or even thousands of pounds and eliminate time wasted trying to repair damaged or vandalised chairs….…

Improvements in design and manufacture mean that the quality and durability of classroom chairs have improved significantly since 1996. The result is that it’s now possible to obtain classroom chairs with a TWENTY year warranty.

That’s twenty years with NO replacement costs and NO repair costs …. a considerable saving of time and money compared with many chairs still in use in UK schools.

….and the chair in question ? It’s the POSTURA PLUS, now in its twenty first year.

Designed not only to be durable and virtually vandal proof it also encourages good posture and is available in 16 colours and six sizes from nursery right through to college and university.

If you’re looking for an attractive, practical and durable chair with an ergonomic design which encourages good posture and which can be used throughout your organisation then the Postura Plus chair is worth serious consideration.

For further information on Postura Plus chairs (which by the way, are manufactured here in the UK) please visit the website: www.centraleducational.co.uk

or contact them by email: info@centraleducational.co.uk or phone: 020 7515 1797 and ask to speak to Martin Evans who will be pleased to help with any questions you may have.